The Week After Christmas---Something is Happening!

The day after Christmas, it started out like a stomach ache or severe gas pain. My belly would tighten and loosen, tighten and loosen. From this point until Mary Catherine was delivered, I had contractions. At first it was every 30 minutes or so. Then it got faster. Soon it was every 4-5 minutes. Kevin called the doctor. They told us to come on to the hospital. We got there and they put me on the fetal monitor. I was having contractions but, I was not dialating at all. They gave sent me home. On Saturday the pain was awful. I was having a hard time doing anything but laying down. We went up to the hospital again and they put me back on the monitor. This time, they gave me morphine and sent me home. At this point I swore I was not going back up there until my water broke. The morphine knocked me out for 2 days. When I came to on Tuesday morning, I wasn't getting any fetal movement and it scard the dickons out of me. Kevin called the doctors and they told us to come to the office. We got in about noon and they took us back for an ultra sound. The baby was moving...whew..big relief. Undoubtedly, the morphine had it where I couldn't feel the baby. As the ultra sound tech was about to finish, I said, would you mind flashing that thing over here on my right side and telling me what part of her body this is...it feels like she has had something stuck in my right rib cage the entire pregnancy. The tech flashed the ultra sound that way. She got an odd look on her face and said, "you all will need to have a seat in the lobby and see the doctor as soon as she returns from lunch. " As soon as Kelli Rainwater returned from lunch, she took Kevin and I back. She said the pain I was feeling was the placenta possibly growing into the uterine wall and we would need to do an emergency C Section now. She said that if it was the case and the placenta had grown into the wal and I had tried to deliver, I could have had serious compliations with bleeding. They would have had to go in and try to repair it to save my life anyway. Okay, Mary Catherine is going to come today by C-Section!

Month 8- It's almost time...

Well, the goodtimes were short lived. Thanksgiving in Charleston was a complete disaster. We went to the Rawlinson family Thanksgiving luncheon. I am sure the food was good but all I could smell and see was FOOD. I could not get out of there fast enough. Before we got back to Kevin's Mom's I had to have Kevin pull off the road for me to be sick. I am so tired of being sick everytime I eat. I am starving for real food but, I can't look at it. When we got to Kevs Mom's house, I had to go lay down while everyone else celebrated Thanksgiving. I was finally able to eat a cold turkey sandwich that evening before going to bed. In the middle of the night, I thought I was about to have the baby. She turned herself completely around so that she was head first. It felt like she had her feet pushing my boobs into my throat. I just knew that we were going to have to go to MUSC to have the baby that night. I swore that night if I ever got back to Florence, I would not leave town again until the baby arrived. In the middle of everything else, Kevin got a call from the City of Florence (his previous employer). They ask him if they give him a huge raise and name him Controller for the city if he will consider coming back to work for them. We decided it would be the best decision for us. He will be coming home the week before Christmas and starting back with the city January 7th. This has been a stressful situation on top of everything else that has happened with this pregnancy. Our newest trick is passing out. Oh yes, I have passed out a few times. The first time it happened, I went to the hospital to have blood work done a week or so ago. As I walked up to the registration, I felt myself get hot and my legs go weak. I got to the counter and I looked at the lady sitting there and I was gone. The next thing I remember I was at the women's center in Dr. Clary's office This happened to me several more times. They don't know what was causing this. I tried to talk the docs into letting me have the baby before Christmas. They said "no!" I have decided not to breast feed. I know that it is best for the baby to breast feed but, I honestly don't think I am healthy enough after all of these problems to take this on. I have decided to reduce the stress and simply use formula. I am sure I am going to hear about this for months from other moms but, they can talk after they have had a pregnancy like mine. I will just be glad to get Mary Catherine here! I think we are seriously going to talk about adopting the next child. I do not know that I can physically or mentally do this again.

Month Seven- Physical Therapy

Okay-We are now in physical therapy for siatic pain. The first week in October Kevin told the doctors that they were going to have to do something for me and relieve the pain. They agreed to try physical therapy. Finally, after two weeks of therapy, I can walk. I am feeling so much better. The pain is still there but it is now just a dull pain that I can live with. I seriously thought I was going to die last month. I have actually felt like going outside for the first time in 7 months. I almost forgot what the outdoors was like. I have been walking to Mom's and to check on the horses few times each day. I finally had a craving...Birthday cake and bread sticks from Olive Garden. It was nice to have something normal. At the end of October and first of November, I spent some time Christmas shopping and working on the nursery. The nausea is not gone completely but as long as I take the Zofran, I can make it throught the day. We are now ordering it in a 3 month supply. I take 4 per day. I haven't lost anymore weight. My weight is holding steady. I drink alot of water. I am actually looking like a pregnant person for the first time. Prior to this point, I really didn't look PG. This has been the best month of the pregnancy so far. Kevin has taken a job in Hilton Head with Cherry Beakert & Holland as a CPA. He is living in a condo down there all week and comming home on the weekends. We have our house on the market. I hope it gets sold soon so that I can get moved as soon as the baby gets here. We will be spending Thanksgiving in Charleston this year.

Month Six- I thought only old people had Siatica!!!

I woke up one morning in the middle of September and I knew something wasn't right. My right leg was hurting. This was a pain like nothing I had ever experienced before. My best description of this pain was as if someone took a metal coat hanger, straightened it out, put it in a fire and got it burning red hot and shoved it through my right buttock and down the back of my leg into my ankle. There was no relief!

Finally, we got the doctors on the phone. They decided I was having siatic pain and they called me in Tylenol 3. That did nothing to relieve the pain! I was thinking more like give me some morphine or something to knock me out. It would have felt better to just chop my leg off with no anesthesia. This was the most painful thing I have ever experienced in my life.

No one ever told me this could happen. Of all the women I have known that have had children, no one has ever told me anything about siatic pain. I have heard old folks talk about having siatica. Never ever have I ever heard a person who was younger than 50 even discuss this. If child birth is worse than this, I am going to have to be put to sleep to give birth. I have decided I am a pain wimp. I just can't do this pregnancy thing anymore.

The docs have called in a "PRENATAL CRADLE" contraption for me to wear until the baby comes. I can't wait to see this thing. It should be here in the next few days. From the photos it looks very much like a body sling! You can imagine the jokes that are going along with this. Kevin has been trying to massage the leg to help relieve the pain. I lay there and scream bloody murder the entire time. He is having to help me out of bed and into the shower. I can not stand up for any period of time without having excruciating pain. We have a stool in the shower now. I sit to take a bath. This is so not funny anymore!

This is so ridiculous, something is going to change. I have been in the bed for two weeks with this. Most days consist of laying, watching TV out of the side of my eyes and crying. This pain is unbelievable!

Month Five- Hickups and Butterflies

Kevin passed his CPA exam. He is in high demand by accounting firms because he passed all four parts in 2 sittings. I have a feeling we are going to have to move somewhere. I finally have a little pop out belly but have lost over 16 lbs. I am still sick but the Zofran helps and has made it where I don't just have to lay in bed all day. By the way...the Zofran should be made of GOLD. 30 day supply is over $500 bucks. This month we had the joy of the Diabetes test. I do not function these days without taking the Zofran before getting out of bed. They scheduled the test for 8am hoping I would get up and be okay until 9 am when the test was over. We made it to the hospital and I was still holding it together. They brought the orange drink in at 8am. It took me about 30 minutes to get it down. They needed me to keep it down for 30 minutes and then they were going to check my blood. At 15 minutes, they had to bring me a cool cloth. I wasn't feeling well. At 20 minutes, I was feeling rather sick. At 25 minutes, I was about to explode and had asked for a trash can. At 30 minutes, one nurse was holding the trash can and one was taking my blood. I went home sick and was useless for the balance of the week. Needless to say, the blood sugar was high. BIG surprise. Since I FAILED the 1 hour test, they called and said they would need for me to do the 3 hour test....LOL! I almost laughed in their face. If I couldn't keep the stuff down for 30 minutes, how did they propose I keep it, or anything else down, for 3 hours? They didn't know, they just knew that was the procedure. I asked to speak with the nurse. They said if I didn't want to take the 3 hour test they would just assume I was diabetic and make me do the diabetic diet. I thought, well, it can't be anyworse than what I have been doing, so I opted to go on the diabetic diet. They set me up to go meet with a dietitican, Rona Wharton. Rona and I were office sweetmates when I worked at Bruce Hospital so I knew her and she knew me. Rona began by asking me what I was eating...I told her exactly what had been going on for 4 months. She assured me I was not diabetic but gave me a machine to check my sugar a few times a day anyway. She helped me come up with several ideas on foods that I might try to eat and keep down. Her suggestions included cold cuts, or cold meats, sandwiches, begals, cereal bars, sugar free ice cream, cream cheese, begals, baked potatos, noodles, veggie soup, orange juice, green beans, grapes, apples, peanut butter and salty foods. Her suggestions really helped. I was glad I went to her for help. The diet was actually more food than what I was eating before I went. My weight loss has leveled off. Mary Catherine has been moving alot this month. It feels like I have butterflies in there. It is a really neat feeling. I sing to the baby alot. I especially like the Star Spangled Banner right now. Kevin talks to her via my belly button...he thinks it is like a direct line to Mary Catherine. I love it when he does this. One morning when we were out in Tennessee at the Celebration, I was laying in bed. My belly kept twitching. It was the oddest thing. For a minute, I layed very still and wondered what in the world was happening... then it hit me ...she has the hickups. It was a precious moment. I did really well at the Celebration. I was not sick at all. I loved the country ham sandwiches...I ate one every night at the show. I also ate the homemade ice cream they sell at the show. It was wonderful! Those 10 days I actually gained 1 lb.